The New Year rings in two traditional lists. “Resolutions” entail too much work for many. On the other hand, “predictions” often prove entertaining twice, once upon the original reading and again 12 months later as the author eats humble pie. No sooner than the ball falls in Times Square than do budding Nostradamuses rise from the shadows of Auld Lang Syne and begin opining on the immediate future of their chosen fields.
Thus do I fearlessly embark on this list of three Sure-Fire 401k Predictions for 2012:
1) By the end of the first quarter, we’ll have two competing regulatory versions of the Fiduciary Standard (both of which will compete with a third legal version of “fiduciary”). The SEC will soon pronounce a Fiduciary Standard representing neither a true meaning of fiduciary nor a true standardization. Nearly all will complain. Around the same time, the Department of Labor will reissue its new Fiduciary Rule, which will satisfy most save for the most conflicted service providers and the strictest adherents of fiduciary law. Speaking of law, neither regulator will honor or recognize eight centuries of tradition and trust law and both will continue to permit what trust law would normally declare a “prohibited self-dealing” transaction.
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Christopher Carosa
Chris Carosa has been writing a weekly article and monthly column for BenefitsPRO online and BenefitsPRO Magazine since 2011 and is a nationally recognized award-winning writer, researcher and speaker. He’s written seven books, including From Cradle to Retire: The Child IRA; Hey! What’s My Number? – How to Increase the Odds You Will Retire in Comfort; A Pizza The Action: Everything I Ever Learned About Business I Learned By Working in a Pizza Stand at the Erie County Fair; and the widely acclaimed 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions. Carosa is also Chief Contributing Editor of the authoritative trade journal FiduciaryNews.com and publisher of the Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel, a weekly community newspaper he founded in 1989. Currently serving as President of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and with more than 1,000 articles published in various publications, he appears regularly in the national media. A “parallel” entrepreneur, he actively runs a handful of businesses, including a small boutique investment adviser, providing hands-on experience for his writing. A trained astrophysicist, he also holds an MBA and has been designated a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. Share your thoughts and story ideas with him through Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/christophercarosa/)and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ChrisCarosa).
